I Knew What Happiness Was (Let the Memory Live Again)
by IceBlueRose
Summary: Leonard remembers some of his happier times as a child thanks to Sara.


Leonard would never admit it to anyone but he loved the scent of lavender. It soothed him and took him back to when he was a kid.

There was a field of lavender not too far from the house where he'd grown up and during the years that his dad had been in prison, Leonard's mother had let him run wild during the summer. She'd send him out and tell him to have fun. He'd spend the day climbing trees, jumping from one branch to another (he was shocked that he'd never broken any bones now that he thought about it), and at the end of the day, he'd cut through that field to get home. He'd liked the way his mom smiled the first time he handed her the sprig of lavender after that first day and so it had become a habit for him to just pick a bouquet for her. The smile on her face was always worth any teasing he'd received when someone spotted him basically picking flowers.

His mom had filled random jars with those bouquets and put them throughout the house, switching out the old ones whenever he brought her a new handful. The stress of trying to support the two of them when she knew she'd have to go on maternity leave soon would disappear from her face for just a little while.

Those years when Lisa had first been born, when his dad had been in jail, were probably the happiest he'd had as a kid. Hell, he was willing to bet that even with the stress of working and trying to find someone who was willing to watch Lisa during the day while she was at work, they were probably still the happiest that his mom had experienced too.

And every summer, the house would smell of lavender.

Which was why when he caught the faint scent of lavender on the Waverider, he paused mid-step, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath. For just a moment, he was five again and, for once, his biggest worry was making sure he was home before dark.

He let out a breath and opened his eyes, glancing around to see if anyone else had been around to notice his reaction. No one was around and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly before he schooled his face in to his usual smirk and continued towards the bridge to meet up with the rest of the team.

Leonard knew the only reason that the whole team was going to be there was so that they'd all know the mission in case something went wrong for whoever was going to be getting off the ship. At least this way, the backup wouldn't be flying blind, so to speak, when they inevitably had to play the cavalry.

He made sure to keep at least half his attention on what Rip was saying as he moved to where Sara was standing, looking down at the map of the area. She didn't look up when he joined her though he saw a smile cross her face as she bumped his arm with her elbow in acknowledgement. His eyebrow lifted slightly as he looked down at the map even as he nudged her back. He leaned down slightly and the scent of lavender hit him again, causing the question he'd been about to ask her to disappear.

Leonard turned to look at her, completely unaware of the way his eyes had softened as he stared at her. Sara turned her head and, at the sight of the fond look he was giving her, raised an eyebrow.

"What?" she asked, making sure to keep her voice low enough that Rip wouldn't notice.

"Lavender," was all he said, his voice just as low. Her brow wrinkled in confusion at the one word answer.

"Yeah. It's my favorite scent." She'd been kicking herself for forgetting hers when she'd packed to get on the Waverider and had had absolutely no problems sneaking off the ship at their last stop in 2020 to pick some up.

Leonard tilted his head towards her slightly. "I like it." He didn't say anything else, simply kept his head tilted in her direction even as he turned his eyes back down to the map. "Are you scouting out the closest bar for us to go to?"

Sara watched him for a moment, a smile on her face as she noticed the way his breathing shifted so that he inhaled through his nose and exhaled through his mouth. Before he could realize that she'd noticed, she glanced down at the map. "Maybe." She leaned closer to him. "But if Rip asks, I'm looking for the best routes to get to the team if the plan falls apart."

He huffed out a small laugh that was more air than anything. "Noted."

"Want to help?"

He gave her a small smile, one that she'd only seen a handful of times. "I suppose I could offer up my expertise."

"With such a ringing endorsement, I might not be able to afford you, Crook," she teased, returning his smile with one of her own.

Leonard pressed his arm against hers slightly. "For you, Assassin? Free of charge."


End file.
